ofNomainCopenhagenandMelbourne’sVuede
Monde– hasbeenintroducinga numberofinitiatives
toreducetheamountofwasteontheislandand
developmoresustainablefoodpractices.
Clingfilmhasbeenalmostcompletelybanished
fromtheisland’skitchensandhehassetupa salt
farmtoreplacetheboxedandbaggedseasalt,which
wasbeingshippedtotheresorteachweek.Healso
workedwithresortmanagementtobuilda recycling
centre,wherealloftheisland’swasteis nowseparated
andsorted.Campbell’snewesthobbyis takingthe
greenglassbottlesoncefilledwithsparklingmineral
waterandturningthemintoartisanaltumblers,
whichwillsoonberolledoutacrosstheisland’s
threerestaurants.Bottlesarealsousedtostore
grainsanddriedgoodsinthekitchenpantries.
Meanwhile,anindustrial-sizedHotRotmachine
quicklyandefficientlyturnsfoodscrapsintocompost
fortheresort’s2.2-hectareorganicfarm,which
producesalmostalloftheisland’sfreshfruitand
vegetables.Morethan 170 free-rangechickensprovide
a constantsupplyofeggstotheresort,whileCampbell
hasalsolearnttheartofbeekeeping,becomingthe
island’sresidentapiarist.
Betweenthefarm-to-tableanddock-to-dish
initiatives,Campbellestimatesaround 90 percent
oftheisland’sfoodofferingis locallysourced.In
additiontoguestsfishingfortheirdinner,where
theyregularlyhaulina deep-seacatchbigenough
tofeedmultipleguests,Campbellworkswitha
localfishermantobringinextrasupplies.Tuna,
trout,mackerel,wahoo,mahimahi,snapperand
prawnsarejustsomeofthefreshcatchonoffer
duringourstay.ThechallengeforCampbelland
headchefCarolineOakleyis continuingtocome
upwithnewwaystoserveit.
It’sa challengetheyaremorethanupto,drawing
inspiration from around the world as they showcase
a widerangeoftechniquesandflavours.Atthe
BeachShack,whereCampbelloverseesthemenu,
theofferingchangesdailywithclevertwistson
classicdishes,suchascoconutandavocadosushi,
whichseesgrated,maturecoconutreplacericein
a delicateminiaturesushiroll.
Furtheralongtheshoreline– viaa picturesque
woodenjettythattraversestheaquamarineharbour
- youarriveat WalkerD’Plank(namedafterthe
resort’sowner),whereyou’lldiscoverOakleyrunning
thekitchen.TheFijian-bornchefwastaughttocook
byherSriLankangrandmotherandbringsaninnate
understandingandbalanceofspicetohercraft.
Here,therearenomenus.Oakleylikestokeep
thingslooseandwillcustomiseeverydishtoa guest’s
personalpalate,joiningyoutablesidebeforethemeal
toteaseoutwhatflavoursyouenjoyandthetypeof
foodyoufeellikeeating.Beforelong,you’llbefeasting
onsomeofyourfavouriteflavours,asa seriesofstreet
food-inspireddisheslandonthetable.
Andbetweencourses,you’llfindyourselfstaring
intothehypnoticbluewatersandonceagainslipping
intothatmostpeculiarof states: total serene and
obscene relaxation.l
FijiAirwaysflies
directtoNadiand
Suvafromselect
Australiancities.
Privatetransfers
totheislandvia
seaplaneor
helicopterare
availablefrom
bothairports.
fijiairways.com
Stay
Privatevillas
startfrom$3245
pernightfortwo
adults,including
allmealsanda
dedicatednanny
forchildren
underthree.
kokomoisland
fiji.com
Fromtopleft:
Kokomo’sapiary;
theboardwalkto
WalkerD’Plank;
coconutsare
usedinmeals
andnaturopathy.
Opposite:the
kitchenandliving
spaceina three-
bedroom villa.
Getting
there
GOURMET TRAVELLER 133
PHOTOGRAPHY KOKOMO PRIVATE ISLAND (VILLA BEDROOM).